Cyber Week Part 2 - Hour by Hour Data

Top Retailers, Top Risers and Traffic Sources

In “Cyber Week – Part 1”, Hitwise saw that the online retail industry grew by 6% YoY to 1.4 billion visits. Industries beyond retail, such as Ticketing and Travel, also participated in Black Friday sales and saw double digit growth.

With more traffic, comes more competition. Every hour counts over the peak season. In Part 2 of our Cyber Week series, we dissected what happened hour by hour, looking at the top retailers, top risers and traffic sources. Below are the key headlines:

1. Black Friday is like no other weekday. On the day before Black Friday and Cyber Monday, retail traffic spiked at 8pm-9am. In contrast, Black Friday saw a higher surge at midnight and at 9am (at 82% and 67%, respectively, than the previous day), as online shoppers stayed up to snag the best deals.

Visits by Hour to Retail Industry – Key Dates over Cyber Week

2. Products differed by the hour. Visits to Computers, Video Games and Electronics specialists surged from midnight to early morning – the hot hours for big ticket items. This preference then changed in the late evening, where Social Media tends to surge. Visits to Apparel, Sports, Health & Beauty and Toys specialists took over from 9pm to midnight.

Peaks Per Retail Vertical – On Black Friday 2017

3. The Top 50 Retailers were most reliant on Social Media,Email and Print Media, to drive traffic to their sites. Search was the dominant source of traffic for the retail industry, accounting for 39.6% share. In contrast, the Top 50 Risers were most reliant on Rewards & Directories.

Traffic Sources – Week Ending 25th November 2017

4. Amazon’s visits on Cyber Monday grew by 8% YoY. Once again, Email was effectively used by Amazon, particularly on Cyber Monday, with reliance rising by 25% YoY. Throughout the day, Amazon saw several peaks (at 2am, 6am, 10am and 1pm), corresponding to effective early morning and lunchtime emails.

Amazon on Cyber Monday 2017 – Hourly Email Clicks

5. Top riser, Pretty Little Thing, also saw impressive 87% growth on Black Friday. Social Media played a large role, with clicks rising by 57% YoY. This channel was used to promote their extensive discounts and flash competitions, particularly in the evening hours from 7pm to 12am. To create urgency, the fast fashion brand also featured a countdown on their site, with the percentage of discounts dropping by the hour.

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